[NEohioPAL]Dia de los Muertos "Day of the Dead" Art Exhibit/October 21

Tue Oct 3 10:45:36 PDT 2006

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Greetings,

WHO:  Standing Rock Cultural Arts

WHAT: Fourth Annual =B3Day of the Dead=B2 Art Exhibit
-masks, paintings, puppets, drawings, and sculpture by Vince Packard,  J.
Edwards Gemind, Cynthia Krizo, Lynn Dewart, Briar Rantilla and more...
-Belly Dancing with Eden Na Zu at the Opening Reception

WHEN:  October 21 - November 18
-Opening Reception:  Saturday, October 21, 8pm- midnight.
-music, food, belly dancing & fun
=20
WHERE:  North Water Street Gallery, 257 N. Water St., Kent

CONTACT:  330-673-4970

GALLERY HOURS:  Thursday-Saturday, 1-5pm or by appointment

This exhibition is a celebration of the Hispanic holiday which occurs on
November 1st and November 2nd every year to honor the ancestors who have
passed on from this earth.   Kent Artist, Vince Packard, has been busy
creating a fresh round of sculptures and paintings.   There will be a few
masks available as well, just in time for the Halloween festivities.  Come
see what surprises Vince has in store.

-Vince Packard:  cannibol.com
-Lynn Dewart:  www.lynndewart.com
-J. EdwardsGemind:  www.artistchair.com/showprofile.asp?id=3D166
-Briar Rantilla:  www.myspace.com/briarrantilla

 www.standingrock.net for updates

More info on the traditions and art associated with Dia de Los Muertos can
be found at: =20

http://www.diadelosmuertos.us/

Thank you for supporting the Arts,

Standing Rock Cultural Arts
257 N. Water St.
Kent, OH 44240
330-673-4970
info at standingrock.net

What do Mexicans celebrate on the "Day of the Dead?"

Ricardo J. Salvador
------------------------------------------------------------------

This is an ancient festivity that has been much transformed through the
years, but which was intended in prehispanic Mexico to celebrate children
and the dead. Hence, the best way to describe this Mexican holiday is to sa=
y
that it is a time when Mexican families remember their dead, and the
continuity of life.

Two important things to know about the Mexican Day of the Dead (D=EDa de los
Muertos) are:

1.    It is a holiday with a complex history, and therefore its observance
varies quite a bit by region and by degree of urbanization.
2.    It is not a morbid occasion, but rather a festive time.

The original celebration can be traced to many Mesoamerican native
traditions, such as the festivities held during the Aztec month of
Miccailhuitontli, ritually presided by the "Lady of the Dead"
(Mictecacihuatl), and dedicated to children and the dead. In the Aztec
calendar, this ritual fell roughly at the end of the Gregorian month of Jul=
y
and the beginning of August, but in the post conquest era it was moved by
Spanish priests so that it coincided with the Christian holiday of All
Hallows Eve (in Spanish: "D=EDa de Todos Santos.") This was a vain effort to
transform the observance from a profane to a Christian celebration. The
result is that Mexicans now celebrate the day of the dead during the first
two days of November, rather than at the beginning of summer. But remember
the dead they still do, and the modern festivity is characterized by the
traditional Mexican blend of ancient aboriginal and introduced Christian
features.

Generalizing broadly, the holiday's activities consist of families (1)
welcoming their dead back into their homes, and (2) visiting the graves of
their close kin. At the cemetery, family members engage in sprucing up the
gravesite, decorating it with flowers, setting out and enjoying a picnic,
and interacting socially with other family and community members who gather
there. In both cases, celebrants believe that the souls of the dead return
and are all around them. Families remember the departed by telling stories
about them. The meals prepared for these picnics are sumptuous, usually
featuring meat dishes in spicy sauces, chocolate beverages, cookies, sugary
confections in a variety of animal or skull shapes, and a special egg-batte=
r
bread ("pan de muerto," or bread of the dead). Gravesites and family altars
are profusely decorated with flowers (primarily large, bright flowers such
as marigolds and chrysanthemums), and adorned with religious amulets and
with offerings of food, cigarettes and alcoholic beverages. Because of this
warm social environment, the colorful setting, and the abundance of food,
drink and good company, this commemoration of the dead has pleasant
overtones for the observers, in spite of the open fatalism exhibited by all
participants, whose festive interaction with both the living and the dead i=
n
an important social ritual is a way of recognizing the cycle of life and
death that is human existence.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

In homes observant families create an altar and decorate it with items that
they believe are beautiful and attractive to the souls of their departed
ones. Such items include offerings of flowers and food, but also things tha=
t
will remind the living of the departed (such as their photographs, a
diploma, or an article of clothing), and the things that the dead prized an=
d
enjoyed while they lived. This is done to entice the dead and assure that
their souls actually return to take part in the remembrance. In very
traditional settings, typically found only in native communities, the path
from the street to the altar is actually strewn with petals to guide the
returning soul to its altar and the bosom of the family.The traditional
observance calls for departed children to be remembered during the first da=
y
of the festivity (the Day of the Little Angels, "D=EDa de los Angelitos"), an=
d
for adults to be remembered on the second day. Traditionally, this is
accompanied by a feast during the early morning hours of November the 2nd,
the Day of the Dead proper, though modern urban Mexican families usually
observe the Day of the Dead with only a special family supper featuring the
bread of the dead. In southern Mexico, for example in the city of Puebla, i=
t
is good luck to be the one who bites into the plastic toy skeleton hidden b=
y
the baker in each rounded loaf. Friends and family members give one another
gifts consisting of sugar skeletons or other items with a death motif, and
the gift is more prized if the skull or skeleton is embossed with one's own
name. Another variation found in the state of Oaxaca is for bread to be
molded into the shape of a body or burial wrap, and for a face to be
embedded on one end of the loaf. During the days leading up to and followin=
g
the festivity, some bakeries in heavily aboriginal communities cease
producing the wide range of breads that they typically sell so that they ca=
n
focus on satisfying the demand for bread of the dead.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Day of the Dead can range from being a very important cultural event,
with defined social and economic responsibilities for participants
(exhibiting the socially equalizing behavior that social anthropologists
would call redistributive feasting, e.g. on the island of Janitzio in
Michoacan state), to being a religious observance featuring actual worship
of the dead (e.g., as in Cuilapan, Oaxaca, an ancient capital of the Zapote=
c
people, who venerated their ancestors and whose descendants do so to this
day, an example of many traditional practices that Spanish priests pretend
not to notice), to simply being a uniquely Mexican holiday characterized by
special foods and confections (the case in all large Mexican cities.)
In general, the more urban the setting within Mexico the less religious and
cultural importance is retained by observants, while the more rural and
Indian the locality the greater the religious and economic import of the
holiday. Because of this, this observance is usually of greater social
importance in southern Mexico than in the northern part of the country.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------

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<HTML>
<HEAD>
<TITLE>Dia de los Muertos "Day of the Dead" Art Exhibit/October 2=
1</TITLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY>
<B>Greetings,<BR>
<BR>
</B><H2>WHO:  Standing Rock Cultural Arts<BR>
<BR>
WHAT: Fourth Annual =B3Day of the Dead=B2 Art Exhibit<BR>
</H2><FONT SIZE=3D"5"><B>-masks, </B></FONT><B><FONT SIZE=3D"4">paintings, pupp=
ets, drawings, and sculpture by Vince Packard,  J. Edwards Gemind, Cynt=
hia Krizo, Lynn Dewart, Briar Rantilla and more...<BR>
-Belly Dancing with Eden Na Zu at the Opening Reception<BR>
</FONT></B><H2><BR>
WHEN:  October 21 - November 18<BR>
</H2><H3>-Opening Reception:  Saturday, October 21, 8pm- midnight.<BR>
-music, food, belly dancing & fun<BR>
</H3><H2> <BR>
WHERE:  North Water Street Gallery, 257 N. Water St., Kent<BR>
<BR>
CONTACT:  330-673-4970<BR>
<BR>
</H2><FONT SIZE=3D"5"><B>GALLERY HOURS:  Thursday-Saturday, 1-5pm </B></=
FONT><B>or by appointment<BR>
<BR>
This exhibition is a celebration of the Hispanic holiday which occurs on No=
vember 1st and November 2nd every year to honor the ancestors who have passe=
d on from this earth.   Kent Artist, Vince Packard, has been busy =
creating a fresh round of sculptures and paintings.   There will b=
e a few masks available as well, just in time for the Halloween festivities.=
  Come see what surprises Vince has in store.  <BR>
<BR>
-Vince Packard:  cannibol.com<BR>
-<FONT SIZE=3D"4">Lynn Dewart:  www.lynndewart.com<BR>
</FONT>-J. EdwardsGemind:  www.artistchair.com/showprofile.asp?id=3D166<=
BR>
-Briar Rantilla:  www.myspace.com/briarrantilla<BR>
<BR>
</B><FONT SIZE=3D"5"> </FONT><FONT SIZE=3D"4"><B>www.standingrock.net for updat=
es<BR>
</B></FONT><H3><BR>
</H3><FONT SIZE=3D"4"><B>More info on the traditions and art associated with =
Dia de Los Muertos can be found at:  <BR>
</B></FONT><H3><BR>
http://www.diadelosmuertos.us/<BR>
<BR>
Thank you for supporting the Arts,<BR>
<BR>
Standing Rock Cultural Arts<BR>
257 N. Water St.<BR>
Kent, OH 44240<BR>
330-673-4970<BR>
<U>info at standingrock.net<BR>
</U></H3><FONT SIZE=3D"5"><BR>
<BR>
</FONT><H1>What do Mexicans celebrate on the "Day of the Dead?"<B=
R>
</H1><FONT SIZE=3D"5"><BR>
Ricardo J. Salvador<BR>
------------------------------------------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
This is an ancient festivity that has been much transformed through the yea=
rs, but which was intended in prehispanic Mexico to celebrate children and t=
he dead. Hence, the best way to describe this Mexican holiday is to say that=
 it is a time when Mexican families remember their dead, and the continuity =
of life. <BR>
<BR>
Two important things to know about the Mexican Day of the Dead (D=EDa de los =
Muertos) are:<BR>
<BR>
1.    It is a holiday with a complex history, and therefore =
its observance varies quite a bit by region and by degree of urbanization.<B=
R>
</FONT><H2>2.    It is not a morbid occasion, but rather a f=
estive time. <BR>
</H2><FONT SIZE=3D"5"><BR>
The original celebration can be traced to many Mesoamerican native traditio=
ns, such as the festivities held during the <U>Aztec month of Miccailhuitont=
li</U>, ritually presided by the "Lady of the Dead" (<I>Mictecacih=
uatl</I>), and dedicated to children and the dead. In the Aztec calendar, th=
is ritual fell roughly at the end of the Gregorian month of July and the beg=
inning of August, but in the post conquest era it was moved by Spanish pries=
ts so that it coincided with the Christian holiday of All Hallows Eve (in Sp=
anish: "D=EDa de Todos Santos.") This was a vain effort to transform=
 the observance from a profane to a Christian celebration. The result is tha=
t Mexicans now celebrate the day of the dead during the first two days of No=
vember, rather than at the beginning of summer. But remember the dead they s=
till do, and the modern festivity is characterized by the traditional Mexica=
n blend of ancient aboriginal and introduced Christian features.<BR>
<BR>
Generalizing broadly, the holiday's activities consist of families (1) welc=
oming their dead back into their homes, and (2) visiting the graves of their=
 close kin. At the cemetery, family members engage in sprucing up the graves=
ite, decorating it with flowers, setting out and enjoying a picnic, and inte=
racting socially with other family and community members who gather there. I=
n both cases, celebrants believe that the souls of the dead return and are a=
ll around them. Families remember the departed by telling stories about them=
. The meals prepared for these picnics are sumptuous, usually featuring meat=
 dishes in spicy sauces, chocolate beverages, cookies, sugary confections in=
 a variety of animal or skull shapes, and a special egg-batter bread ("=
pan de muerto," or bread of the dead). Gravesites and family altars are=
 profusely decorated with flowers (primarily large, bright flowers such as m=
arigolds and chrysanthemums), and adorned with religious amulets and with of=
ferings of food, cigarettes and alcoholic beverages. Because of this warm so=
cial environment, the colorful setting, and the abundance of food, drink and=
 good company, this commemoration of the dead has pleasant overtones for the=
 observers, in spite of the open fatalism exhibited by all participants, who=
se festive interaction with both the living and the dead in an important soc=
ial ritual is a way of recognizing the cycle of life and death that is human=
 existence.<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------------------------------------------------<BR=
>
<BR>
In homes observant families create an altar and decorate it with items that=
 they believe are beautiful and attractive to the souls of their departed on=
es. Such items include offerings of flowers and food, but also things that w=
ill remind the living of the departed (such as their photographs, a diploma,=
 or an article of clothing), and the things that the dead prized and enjoyed=
 while they lived. This is done to entice the dead and assure that their sou=
ls actually return to take part in the remembrance. In very traditional sett=
ings, typically found only in native communities, the path from the street t=
o the altar is actually strewn with petals to guide the returning soul to it=
s altar and the bosom of the family.The traditional observance calls for dep=
arted children to be remembered during the first day of the festivity (the D=
ay of the Little Angels, "D=EDa de los Angelitos"), and for adults t=
o be remembered on the second day. Traditionally, this is accompanied by a f=
east during the early morning hours of November the 2nd, the Day of the Dead=
 proper, though modern urban Mexican families usually observe the Day of the=
 Dead with only a special family supper featuring the bread of the dead. In =
southern Mexico, for example in the city of Puebla, it is good luck to be th=
e one who bites into the plastic toy skeleton hidden by the baker in each ro=
unded loaf. Friends and family members give one another gifts consisting of =
sugar skeletons or other items with a death motif, and the gift is more priz=
ed if the skull or skeleton is embossed with one's own name. Another variati=
on found in the state of Oaxaca is for bread to be molded into the shape of =
a body or burial wrap, and for a face to be embedded on one end of the loaf.=
 During the days leading up to and following the festivity, some bakeries in=
 heavily aboriginal communities cease producing the wide range of breads tha=
t they typically sell so that they can focus on satisfying the demand for br=
ead of the dead. <BR>
<BR>
------------------------------------------------------------------------<BR=
>
<BR>
The Day of the Dead can range from being a very important cultural event, w=
ith defined social and economic responsibilities for participants (exhibitin=
g the socially equalizing behavior that social anthropologists would call re=
distributive feasting, e.g. on the island of Janitzio in Michoacan state), t=
o being a religious observance featuring actual worship of the dead (e.g., a=
s in Cuilapan, Oaxaca, an ancient capital of the Zapotec people, who venerat=
ed their ancestors and whose descendants do so to this day, an example of ma=
ny traditional practices that Spanish priests pretend not to notice), to sim=
ply being a uniquely Mexican holiday characterized by special foods and conf=
ections (the case in all large Mexican cities.) <BR>
In general, the more urban the setting within Mexico the less religious and=
 cultural importance is retained by observants, while the more rural and Ind=
ian the locality the greater the religious and economic import of the holida=
y. Because of this, this observance is usually of greater social importance =
in southern Mexico than in the northern part of the country.<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------------------------------------------------<BR=
>
 <BR>
------------------------------------------------------------------------<BR=
>
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